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Work Classes (C0-C5)

cxc-dev classifies every coding task into one of six work classes. The class sets how much planning, search, auditing, and verification the task gets — small tasks stay fast, risky tasks get full PABCD.

Class Name Scope Required treatment
C0 Trivial text Typo, comment, copy, log string — zero behavior change Direct fix plus the smallest proof.
C1 Single-file local One file, local behavior, no new abstractions Fast path plus a targeted check.
C2 Ordinary product slice Conventional endpoint, form, table, model, list/detail screen Compact plan, adjacent-convention search, focused tests, micro-audit.
C3 Cross-domain feature/refactor Multiple modules, public API, shared types, broad behavior Compact or full PABCD by risk; subagent audit when scope warrants.
C4 High-risk Auth, payments, data deletion, migration, release, permission/security boundary Full PABCD (mandatory), full gates, durable risk/evidence record.
C5 Research / ambiguous Unclear requirements after one clarification round Interview-first via the pabcd skill, then reclassify.

Promotion rules

Section titled “Promotion rules”
  • A conventional route → service → storage slice stays C2 even though it spans files. C3’s “multiple modules” means crossing a module or package boundary beyond that slice.
  • C4-promotion triggers override any fast path. Security, data deletion, payments, migration, and permission changes pull the work up to C4-level care.
  • If only a sliver of a task is high-risk, split that sliver out rather than inflating the whole slice.

Fast path (C0 / C1)

Section titled “Fast path (C0 / C1)”

C0 and C1 work — one file, no new abstractions, local behavior, roughly a five-line edit — takes the patch fast path: a direct edit plus the smallest proof that it works. A zero-behavior edit inside a sensitive file stays C0, but any edit touching executed logic in that path is not C0/C1 — reclassify and read first.

Routing

Section titled “Routing”

Once classified, cxc-dev routes to surface-specific dev-* skills (frontend, backend, data, architecture, testing, security, and more). See the Skills guide for the full routing table.